Capping machine



muy 27, 1943 C. w. GOODWIN :TAL 2,325,163

CAPPING MACHINE Filed June 23, 1941 6`Shaets-Sheet l July 27,1943.

CAPPI'NG MACHINE s-Sheet 2 June 23 Filed 6 She@ n miv mM/M m E, fm l www I Jw July 27, 1943- Cpw. GOODWIN ET AL. 2,325,153

CAPPING MACHINE Filed June 23, 1941. 6 Shams-Sheet 3 July 27, 1943.

C. W. GOODWIN ETAL CAPPING MACHINE Filed June 23, 1941 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTORS il( 6' RNEY July 27, 1943. Q W GQODwlN ET AL 2,325,163

CAPP ING MACHINE Filed June 23, 1941 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 #www IK/VAWr//v BY ATTO NEY July 27, 1943- c. w. GOODWIN ET A1. 2,325,163

CAPPING MACHINE Filed June v23, 1941 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 Patented July 27, 1943 OFFICE CAPPING MACHINE cui w. Goodwin,

Plainiield, N. J., and Harold W. Martin, Malverne, N. Y.,

assignors to American Seal-Kap Corporation of Delaware. Wilmington, Del., a corporation of Delaware Application June 23, 1941, Serial No. 399,280

'I Claims. lThis invention relates to a machine and method for applying flexible skirted hood caps to milk bottles or the like and more particularly to a machine for applying and sealing caps of the.

above type having a pleated skirt coated in whole or in part with a thermoplastic adhesive which requires heat and pressure for sealing.

An object of the invention is to provide a mechanism of the above type having novel and improved details of construction and features of operation. l

Anotherobject isr to provide a novel and improved mechanism of 'the above type having characteristics suited for commerciall operation.

Another ob'ject is to provide a ap applying and sealing mechanism of the type above indicated which may be used with a standard filling and capping machine without requiring alterations in such machine.

Another object is to provide a machine of the type above indicated which .is capable of receiving a suilicient supply of caps to enable the machine to operate without attention and without replenishing the cap supply for a substantial period of time.

Another object is to provide novel and improved pick-up means for removingfsuccessive caps from a stack. l

Another object is to provide means for automatically positioning a succession of stacks of caps in operative relationship with respect to the pick-up mechanism.

Another object is to provide novel and improved heating means suited to heat to a softening temperature the adhesive carried on the skirts of the caps. .4

Another object is to provideheating means for the purpose above indicated which is adapted to heat the thermoplastic adhesive without heating the skirt or the material of the cap itself to any substantial degree.

Another object is to provide novel and improved mechanism for applying a cap of the type above indicated to a bottle'with vthe adhesive heat-softened for sealing'.

Another object is to provide a heating mechanism of the type above indicated which may be readily disassembled for cleaning.

Another object is to provvide a heating mechanism of the above type in which the heating is accomplished by focused radiant heat rays.

Another object is to provide a heating mechanism of the above type in which the source of heat may be instantly interrupted upon stoppage of the mechanism, whereby danger of overheating of the cap is eliminated.

Another object is to provide a heating mechanism of the above type which is ready for instant use when the machine is connected for operation.

Another object is to provide novel and improved mechanism for applying caps to bottle necks.

Various other objects and advantages will be apparent as the nature of the invention is more fully disclosed. Y

In one embodiment the present machine provides a magazine adapted to contain a plurality of stacks of nested preformed caps which are arranged to be successively brought into operative position to feed the stacks of caps into a supply chamber from which they are successively picked by a novel and improved picker mechanism and are rolled along a feed chute on the lower edges of their skirts. Radiant heat rays are focused on the upper edges of the skirts ofthe rolling caps so as to soften a band oi the adhesive extending around the skirt. Mechanical feed means are provided for rolling the caps along said feed chute at a predetermined speed suited to raise the adhesive to softening temperature. The caps are fed by the chute to a capping station where they are held in position to be picked off by the horizontally advancing necks of successive milk bottles and to be carried thereby to a sealing station. The Sealing station in the form shown comprises a rotating turret having a plurality of sealing heads which are adapted to fold the skirts around the necks of the milk bottles and hold the same under sealing pressure until the adhesive has cooled and set.

The feed of the cans is so synchronized with respect to the feed of the milk bottles that the caps are successively fed to the capping station.'

to meet the advancing milk bottles as they pass such station. The caps thus do not remain at the capping station a suiilcient period of time for the adhesive to cool below its sealing temperature.

- Althoughthe novel features which are believed to be characteristic of this invention are pointed out more particularly in the claims appended hereto, the invention itself may be better understood by referring to the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings forming a part thereof in which a specific embodiment of the invention has been set forth for purposes of illustration.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a top plan view oi.' a cap applying and sealing mechanism embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is 'a transverse longitudinal section taken along the vline 2-2 of Fig. 1 showing the supply magazine and picker mechanism;

Fig. 3 is a. transverse section taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a detail view of a one-revolution clutch used for operating the picker mechanism;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged section taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 1 showing the details of the picker mechanism;

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section similar to Fig. 5 showing the picker mechanism in retracted position;

Figs. "I and 8 are transverse sections taken on the lines 11 and 8-8 respectively of Fig. 5;

Fig. 9 is a transverse section taken on the line 8-9 of Fig. 6;

Fig. 10 is a longitudinal section through the feed chute and lampk housing taken along the line Illi6 of Fig. 1j;

Fig.' 11 is a transverse section taken along the line I i-Ii of Fig. 10;V

Fig. 12 is a horizontal section taken on thel line |2-I2 of Fig. 10;

Figs. 13, 14 and 15 are detail views illustrating successive steps in the capping and sealing operation;

Fig. 16 is a transverse section on the line lS-IG of Fig. 10 showing the feed chute and lamp housing; p

Fig. 17 is a section taken on the line |1-I1 of Fig. 2 showing the one-revolution' clutch;

Fig. 18 is a section taken on the line IB-IB of Fig. 17;

Fig. 19 is a section taken on the line lil-i9 of Fig. 6 showing details of the picker mechanism; l i K Fig. 20 is a bottom plan view of the cap applying mechanism;

Fig. 21 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the path of the bottles and caps through the machine; and

Fig. 22 .is a longitudinal section similar to Fig. 5 illustrating a diierent embodiment of drive meansffor the picker mechanism. In the following description and in the claims certain specific terms have been used for convenience in referring to various details of the invention. These terms, however, are to be given as broad an interpretation as the state of the art will permit.

Referring to the drawings more in detail, the invention is shown in Fig. 1 as applied to a capping and sealing mechanism comprising magazine M having a plurality of tubes adapted to contain a plurality of stacks of nested caps for successive application tomilk bottles, a picker mechanism P, which is adapted to pick successive caps from said stacks and supply them to a chute C along which the caps roll onthe lower edges of their flared skirts in the path of radiant heat rays which'are focused onto the adhesive carried by lthe skirt. From the chute C the caps pass to a cap applying station S where they meet and are picked of by the advancing'necks of milk bottles and are carried to a bank of rotating capping heads Hl which contract the skirts around the necks of the bottles and hold the same under sealingpressure.

-"'I`he milk bottles are received by a suitable conveyor, passed through a lling device F of standard construction wherein they arev filled with milk, thence past the cap applying station S and to the capping heads H above mentioned, after.

which they are redelivered to the conveyor. The filling station F and the capping heads H form a part of the standard lling and capping apparatus, the details of which form no part of the present invention. The capping heads H may. for example, be of the form disclosed in a copending application, Goodwin and Martin, Ser. 383,752 for Capping head. The capping head is particularly designed to fold and seal caps of the type referred to herein. It is to be understood, however, that other types of capping heads and other types of caps may be used if desired.

The magazine M, picker P and chute C, in accordance with the present invention. are formed as a unit mounted on a suitable pedestal which may be positioned to supply caps with heal; softened adhesive to the milk bottle heads as they advance from the ller F to the capping heads H on astandard filling and capping machine as above mentioned. These mechanisms are described more in detail as follows:

Cap magazine The cap magazine is shown in Figs. 2 and 3 as comprising a stationary housing 5 attached by a bracket 6 to a pedestal 1 adapted to rest upon the floor in a convenient position with respect to the filling machine. A rotatable turret I0, in the form of a hollow casting having a hub Il, is mounted for rotation on a bearing sleeve I2a carried on a stationary pin i2 which is mounted in a boss i3 formed in the housing 5. The turret i0 is prvided with a plurality of openings i5 adapted to receive tubes I6 which carry the various stacks of caps20. The tubes -I6 and the corresponding portionsY of the turret i0 are provided with' longitudinal openings l1, which facilitate the manual filling of the tubes with the stacks of caps. i

In practice the stacks of caps are usually wrapped in paper to form units corresponding in size and length generally to the tubes I6. The units are inserted as such in said tubes and the stack is unwrapped in situ by unrolling and removing the paper through the longitudinal slots I1. This procedure not only`facilitates l the loading of the magazine, but prevents the caps from being touched by the hand during the loading operation The caps 2li may be of the general type. disclosed in the copending application of Herbert G. Vore, Ser. No. 391,125, which comprises a central diaphragm or closure portion 2 I, (Fig. 5) an annular pouring lip housing 22 and a fluted skirt 23 carrying a band of thermoplastic adhesive 25 (Fig. 16) on the outer surface thereof. VA disc 24. may be positioned within the recess formed by the diaphragm 2|'and the pouring lip housing 22 for increasing the holding power of the cap when seated on the internal ledge of a milk bottle. l The caps 20 are inserted in the tubes I6 with their uted skirts 23 extending rearwardly and with their diaphragms 2i and pouring lip housings 22 extending forwardly. The magazine M is arranged at an inclination to the horizontal such that the caps feed forwardly by gravity.

The housing 5 is formed with a cap supply chamber 30 with which the successive tubes i6 are adapted to register as the turret i0 is rotated, so that the caps from the corresponding tubes i6 slide downwardly by gravity into the supply chamber 30 when the tubes are properly positioned,

For rotating or indexing the turret I3, a motor 3| is provided driving a worm 32 which meshes with a worm wheel 33 rotatably mounted on the pin |2 and having a key 33a engaging a keyway ||a in the hub of the turret I3. 'I'he turret may thus be lifted from the pin I2 and removed for cleaning without disturbing the gear 33 and driving mechanism. The worm gears provide a non-reversible drive to hold the turret against rotation when the motor is stopped. Suitable latch means may be used, however, if desired, to latch the turret in successive feed positions.

The motor 3| is controlled by ak pair of contacts 34 which are closed by a spring pressed finger 35 carried in the housing 5. 'I'he finger 35 is provided with a lever 33 which is adapted to engage wthe skirts of' a stack of caps for holding the finger out of engagement with the contacts 34 when the supph' chamber 33 contains a stack of caps. When the entire stack has been fed past the lever 33, the spring pressed finger is thereby released and is caused to close the contacts 34 which actuate the motor 3|. The motor accordingly drivesr the worm gear 33 and causes the turret I3 to rotate slowly. This rotation of the turret continues until a tube I3 containing a supply of caps 23 is brought into registration with the supply chamber 33. When this occurs the stack of caps in the tube I3 slides downwardly into the supply chamber, engages the lever 33, actuates the finger 35 to open the contacts 34 and thereby stops the motor 3|. The turret I3 remains in this position unti1 the supply of caps in the tube I3 cooperating with the supply chamber 33 is exhausted, after which the above mentioned operation is repeated to bring a new tube I3 into supply position. The empty tubes I3 may be manually filled from time to time as required. In this way a large number of caps is maintained at all times in the magazine M.

The supply chamber 33 isprovided at its discharge end with a cap retaining ring 43 (Figs. 2, 5 and 7) having afbevelled inner surface 4|. The bevelled surface 4| is adapted to engage and retain the skirt 23 of the forward cap so as to hold the stack of caps in the supply chamber 33 until the individual caps are successively removed by the picker mechanism to be described. The retaining ring 43 is assisted in this holding operation by a plurality of spring pressed retaining fingers 45, which are mounted on the housing 5 and are provided with points 43 which extend inwardly beyond the inner edge of the ring 4U. The fingers 45 are pivoted as at 41 to ears 48 formed on the housing 5. The springs 49 normally hold the fingers 40 in their innermost position but permit retraction thereof as the caps are successively withdrawn through the opening in the ring 43.

Picker mechanism The picker mechanism is shown in Figs. 5 to 9 and 19 as comprising a housing 53 mounted on the bracket 3 and forming a cylinder 5| in which a head 52 is slidably mounted. The head 52 is provided with a diametrical slot 53' in which picker fingers 54 are pivotally mounted by means of pins 55. A spring 56, extending between opposite picker fingers 54 in said slot 53, tends to hold said fingers 54 outwardly. The fingers 54 are provided with curved points 53 which are adapted to enter the recess in the cap formed by the depressed diaphragm 2| and engage the inner surface of the pouring lip housing 22. The head 52 carries a sleeve 32, which extends outwardly through a bearing 33 in said cylinder 53 and carries a collar 34 which is engaged by a forked arm 35 pivoted at 33 to a bracket 31 carried by the housing 5. T he arm 35 is attached to a link 33 by means of which the head 521s reciprocated.

A stripper plate |2.is carried on pins 'i3 (Fig. 19) which are slidably mounted in the head 52 and are normally held in a retracted position by springs '|4 seated in bores 15 in said head 52. The stripper plate 12 seats against a shoulder 'I3 formed in the housing v53 to limit; the rearward movement thereof and to permit the fingers 54 to be retracted beyond the forward surface of said plate. The stripper plate 12 is provided with slots through which the fingers 54 extend when they are in advanced position.

A rod 33 is seated within the sleeve 32 and is slidably held in a boss 3| carried in a bracket 32 attached to the housing 5. The rod 33 is provided with a head 33 sliding within the sleeve 62 and in a bore 51 in the head 52 and is normally held in advanced position by a spring 34 located in a bore 35 of said sleeve. The head 33 is provided with a shoulder 33 which is adapted to engage surfaces 39 formed on the fingers 54 for holding the ngers in retracted position as shown in Fig. 6. A collar 33 carried on the rod 33 engages the boss 3| to limit the forward movement of the rod.

The fingers 54 are provided with cam surfaces 33 adapted to engage the inner surface of a retracting ring 3| mounted within the cylinder 5| for retracting the fingers 54 on the rearward movement of the head 52. A discharge passage 91 is formed in the housing 5 to receive the caps from the picker mechanism.

The pickenmechanism is normally held in its rearward position as shown in Fig. 6 with the fingers 54 retracted and withddrawn within the confines of the stripper plate 12, the fingers54 being locked in retracted position by the shoulder 33 of the head 33 engaging the surfaces 39 of said fingers. As the head 52 is advanced by the forked arrn35, the rod 83, head 33, head 52 and fingers 54 advance as a unit. The stripper plate 12, however, remains in the position shown in Fig. 19 until the head 52 has advanced sufciently to engage the rear surface thereof, the pins 13 sliding in the head 52 during this portion of the movement. When the head 52 has advanced to engage the stripper plate 12, the points of the fingers 54 project through the slots 'l1 in the stripper` plate a sufficient distance to engage within the depressed central diaphragm portion of the cap.

Thereafter, the head 52, per plate 12 advance as a unit unti1 the collar 95 oi' the rod 33 engages the boss 3| of the bracket 32 and prevents further forward movement of the rod 33. Further movement of the head 52 then causes the sleeve 64 to move with respect to the rod 33 compressing the spring 84 and releasing the surfaces 39 of the fingers 54 from the shoulder 83 of the head 83, thereby permitting the fingers 54 to snap open, in refingers 54 and stripspouse to the pressure of the spring 53, into cap engaging position as shown in Fig. 5.

The arrangement is such that the stripper plate 'I2 engages the pouring lip housing of the forward cap 23 and slightly lifts the stack for straightening and centering the caps before the fingers 54 have been allowed to snap open, thereunderstood, of course, that by assuring the proper positioning of the yforward cap with respect to said fingers. When the fingers 54 are snapped open as above mentioned the points 58. thereof engagel the inner surface 'off'thepouring' lip housing 22 and securely grip the same.

1On thereturn'stroke of the head 52 the cap 20 is ,pulled through the retaining ring 40 by the points M58 of the fingers 54. The retaining iingei-s^45 are retracted by the skirt of the cap ..20 as it is pulledlthrough the retaining ring 40y rbut snap back against the skirt of the succeeding cap' to strip the same fromthe forward cap and to prevent more than one cap from being pulled through the retaining ring. It is to be the fingers 45 may be omitted if the desired stripping action is obtained by the retaining ring itself.

When the fingers 54 have reached a position such that the cam surfaces., 90 thereof engage the retracting ring the fingers are retracted and release ythe cap. At about this point the stripper plate 12 engages the shoulder 16 of the housing 50 .and further rearward movement of the head 52 causes the fingers 54 to be wichthe key |08 is released from the clutch head and allows the eccentric |00 to stop rotating.

The key |08 is actuated by an arm H2, which is pivoted as at ||4 (Fig. 17) to the frame of the machine and is held downwardly by spring ||5.

' The arm ||2 is provided with an inclined forwhen the key |08 is withdrawn.

The arm ||2 is attached to a link |20, which is connected to a lever |2| attached to the core into alignment with the shoulder 88 of the head l 83 and permitthe head to snap outwardly in ref sponse to the action olf thespring 84 to engage said surfaces land retain said fingers in vretract- I ed position, as shown in Fig. 6.

By the mechanism above described, at each stroke of the arm 65 the forward cap .is removed from the supply chamber 30 and is deposited in the discharge passage 91. By utilizing a. 'pair of spaced pick-up fingers 54 as shown, any disr tortion or elongation of the diaphragmportion 2| of the cap due to the action of the fingers on the pouring lip housing in one direction causes a contraction of said pouring lip housing in the opposite direction which pinches the disc 24 -and retains'. the same securely in the cap. It is obvious, however, that any desired number of pickup fingers may be employed.c A specific embodiment has been shown forpurposes of illustration only,

Picker operating hchanism l In the embodiment shown the picker mechanisni is operated by a one-revolution clutch which may be of any standard construction, one form of which is illustrated in Figs. 4, 17 and 18.

|22 of a solenoid |23 or to the armature of an electromagnet, which is adapted when energized, to lift the arm ||2 from the slot ||6 and release the key |08.

iIn this embodiment, when the solenoid |23 is momentarily energized,v` the'arm ||2 releases the key |08 as above mentioned, thereby permitting l the key to engage the shoulder |01' and cause the eccentric |00 to rotate. Deenergization of the solenoid |23, however, releases the arm |I2 and permits the sameto rest upon the surface of the eccentric |00f. the eccentric rotates, the slot ||6 of key |08 engages the inclined surface ||3 of the arm ||2, thereby gradually withdrawing the key. |08 until it reaches the original position illustrated in Fig. 4, thereby disengaging the clutch and bringing the eccentric |00 to rest. In this way the eccentric is caused to rotate once each time the solenoid |23 is momentarily energized. It is to be understood, of course, that any other standard type of one-revolution clutch may be substituted for that herein disclosed.

'An alternative means for actuating the sleeve 62 as illustrated'in Fig.. 22. Inl this embodiment the head 52 engages a spring |33 seated within the housing 50, which tends to normally hold vthehead 52 and associated picker mechanism in forward position. The sleeve 62 is connected by Referring to the above figures, the link 68 is shown as' connected to an eccentric |00, which is attached by means of screws |04 to a housy In the embodiment shown the housof av motor |03. The shaft |02 carries a clutch head |05 having an inclined helical surface |06 terminating in a shoulder |01. A key |08, which slides in a slot |09 in the eccentric |00, is held by a spring ||0 in a position to engage the shoulder |01 and thereby cause the eccentric |00 to rotate with the shaft |02. When retracted ing lol is rotatably mounted on the shaft a02 abracket |30 tothe core |3| of a solenoid |32. Energization of the solenoid |32 serves to retract the head 52 against the action of the spring |33. Upon deenergization, the spring |33 advances the' head 52 and associated picker mechanism.- Consequently, the pick'r mechanism is caused to complete a. single cycle each time the solenoid |32 is energized and released. The head 52 is normally held by the spring |33 in its forward position so that the stripping plate 12 engages the pouring lip housing of the foremost cap and the fingers 54 are' in cap engaging position as shown in Fig. 5. Y

lll'reecw chute The feed mechanism,- as shown more in detail in'Figs. 10 and 16, comprises a pair of transverse brackets |4| secured in spaced relationship by pins |40 and spacing sleeves |39. The brackets |4| are shown as attached to the bracket 6 and supported by inclined bracing members |42 and vertical struts |42a forming a cantilever truss.Y v

The vertical struts |42a are secured to the bracket by bolts |42b. A back plate |46 and a front plate |6| (Fig.k 16) are secured by suitable means, as by welding, to the brackets |4| and are formed with top horizontal anges |15 and |16 respectively.

` A horizontal cap feed plate |45 is mounted in a slightly inclined position on a back plate |46 and is provided with a bottom lip |41. which is adapted to support the bottom edge of the cap l as they advance.

skirt as the cap is rolled along the plate |45 by the means to be described. A guide plate |50 is spaced from the plate |45 to hold the cap in proper position thereon. The plate |50 is mounted in an inclined position on the front plate so as to engage only the lower edge of the pouring lip housing 22 of the cap.

The feed plate |45 and the guide plate |50 are mounted by any suitable means on the back plate |46 and the front plate |5| respectively, and are preferably arranged so as to be readily removable therefrom to permit convenient disassembling and cleaning of the equipment. In the embodiment shown, the plates |45 and |50 are provided with positioning lugs |45a, |45b and |50a, |5017, respectively which rest against the inner surfaces of the plates |46 and 5|. The lugs 45a and |50a carry pins |45c and |50c which are provided with enlarged heads and removably seat in bayonet slots |46a and |5| a in the plates |46 and |5|. The lugs |45b and |50b may be ex tended downwardly to rest on the brackets |4| if desired. Obviously, the lugs |45a and |45b and the corresponding lugs |50a and |50b may be extended downwardly to rest on the brackets 4| if desired. Obviously, the lugs |45a and |45b and the corresponding lugs |50a and |50b may be formed as single elongated lugs attached to the backs of plates |45 and |50 at convenient intervals and as many of such lugs as required may be spaced along said plates.

A guide plate |52 may be attached to the bracket 6 by screws |53 in a position to receive caps from the discharge passage '01 and feed the same to the feed plate |45. For advancing the caps on the feed plate |45, a chain |60 is provided which passes around sprockets |6| and |62, rotatably mounted between the brackets |4|. The sprocket 1|6| is shown as attached to a gear wheel |63 meshing with a gear |64 driven by an electric motor |65 positioned within the bracket 6. The chain |60 may, however, be driven in any other convenient manner.

The chain |60 carries a series of pins`k| 68 which extend upwardly between the guide .plate l|50 and the feed plate |45 in a position to engage the cap 20 on the feed plate |45. The pins |68 extend upwardly only a slight distance above the center line or said caps and terminate well beneath the level of the top edges; ofthe skirts for the reasons to be pointed out.

The chain |60 runs in andsiseulorted by a removable channel |66 which rests ppona series of brackets |61 attached to the back bracket |4I.

The channel |66 is provided with a front lip |69 on which the bottoms of the pins |68 ride.- The bottom lip |41 of the feed plate |46 contacts with the sides of the pins |60 so that the *pins are positioned and guided by the lips |41 and |69 The guide plate |50 preferably extends downwardly past the top of the front bracket |4| to prevent a displaced cap from catching thereon and clogging the chute.

'I'he advancing pins |63 cause the caps which are received from the guide plate |52 to roll along the feed plate |45 to the discharge end thereof on the lower edges of their, skirts. During this operation, the lower edges of the skirts of the caps rest upon the lip |41 of the plate |45 and the caps are slightly inclined rearwardly so as to rest against the face of the plate |45. In this way a minimum of friction is presented to the rolling movement of the caps and the caps are advanced at a uniform speed by the pins |68 as above mentioned.

H eating means 5 For heating the band of adhesive 25 on the lower edges of the outer surfaces of the skirts i3 of the caps |45, there is provided a radiant heating means comprising a row of incandescent lamps 51| of 10 the type emitting heat rays from a concentrated source or filament. The lamps |1| are shown as mounted in sockets |10 carried on a base i12 which -is mounted between front and back walls |13 of a lamp housing |11. The walls 13 15 formed with bottom flanges |14, winch are adapted to rest on and be clamped to the fianges |15 and |16 of the plates |46 and l5! by suitable means shown as clips |86. The lamp housing may thus be removed or assembled by sliding the same longitudinally over the flanges |15.

The lamp housing |11 may be closed by a .hood |04 which may be formed integral with the side walls |13. The side walls |13 and hood |64 are shown as provided with louvers |80 to permit the heated air to escape and the base |12 is provided with apertures |8| to permit free iiow of heated air upwardly for the above purpose.

The light housing |11 carries a refiector |90. which is attached to the side walls |13 by sultable means such as asbestos blocks 9| which heat insulate the same from the side walls |13 and may be made substantially elliptical in section and arranged so that the filaments of the lamps |1| are located at one focus of the ellipse and bands of adhesive 25 at the top edges of the skirts of the caps 20 are located at the other focus. In this way all light rays emanating from the lamp |1| are focused directly upon lthe adhesive 25 on the cap skirt as the latter rolls along the feed plate |45. The speed of travel of the caps is such that the adhesive is heat softened and rendered tacky by the radiant heat from the lamps |1| as they roll along the feed plate 45 Without materially heating the paper or body of the skirt or of the cap itself.

The lamps |1| are preferably connected to be energized only when the motor |64 is operating. Hence, should the motor stop for any reason the lamps are likewise deenergized, thereby cutting oif the source of radiant heat and preventing the caps from becoming damaged or ignited due to texcessive exposure to such heat rays. The heat vrays may thus be made sufficiently intense to heat soften the thermoplastic adhesive on the skirt of the moving cap without danger of injuring the cap if the feed is interrupted. Furthermore, the operation of the heating means is instantaneous, the heat being available immediately when the machine is turned on and being cut off immediately when the machine is stopped.

No warming up period is required, nor is any additional protective means necessary to prevent the caps from becoming overheated.

The normal time required for feeding a cap G5 along the plate |45 is determined in accordance with the heat requirements so that the caps are discharged withthe adhesive in softened tacky condition suitable for sealing on a bottle in the 7 manner to be described. As the caps roll along the plate |45 on the lower edge of the skirt all parts of the skirt bearing the adhesive 25 are successively brought into position to receive heat rays from the lamps |1|. The rays enter the spaces between the skirt folds and soften the 20 as they roll along the feed plate adhesive at the points where maximum adhesion is required.

The pins it@ terminate below the point of focus of the heat rays from the lamps l||. Hence they are not subjected to intense heat and are not required to withstand high temperatures. This also -applies to the other mechanical parts which are located beyond the focus of the heat rays.

While a particular type of feed means has been shown, it is to be understood that various Aother means may be utilized for feeding the cap along the path ofthe heat rays. It is also to be understood that the radiant heating means herein disclosed may be suitable for other uses and is not restricted to the particular machine disclosed herein.

Cap applying means The caps are discharged from the plate it into a vertical delivery chute 895, Figs. and 11, wherein they drop onto a plate G96. The chute |95 may be secured between the brackets it! and against a cross bar i9@ by a pivoted latch bar |93, and may be provided with a positioning lip i192 which rests on one of the brackets itl. The chute |95 may thus be removed by lifting the latch bar itt and sliding the chute from the frame formed by the ends of the brackets itl and the cross bar ltd.

The plate |96 is mounted for rotation by means of a pin i9? mounted in a bracket |98 secured to the chute E55. A spring pressed ball Zilli, mounted in the bracket |98 bears against the upper surface of the rotating plate ist and is adapted to engage recesses 2m, Fig. 12, to frictionally position the plate i9@ for the purpose to be described.

The plate l2@ is provided with a plurality of arms 202 which are adapted to pass beneath the end of the chute |95 and to form stops on which the caps 2U rest in vertical position, as shown in Figs. 10 and 11. The arms 202 are separated by recesses 223 which are of a shape suited to receive the neck of an advancing milk bottle 22d so that the plate |96 is rotated by said bottle as it passes the cap applying station. In the embodiment shown in Fig. 12, each bottle rotates the plate l 96 one-third of a complete revolution and positions the succeeding recess 2t@ to be engaged by the neck of the next succeeding bottle.

The delivery end of the chute |95 is provided with a control plate 2 l G, Figs. 11, 13 and 20, which is slidably mounted on rods 2| l held in a bracket 2|2 attached t0 the lower end of the chute |95 and pressed inwardly by springs 2 i3. The plate 2| is preferably inclined slightly as shown, and is provided with an inner upturned lip 2|@ around which the cap slides as it is tipped from vertical to horizontal position by the advancing bottle. The plate 2|@ is positioned so that in normal operation there is a clearance between the plate and the bottle cap so that the ca p does not engage the plate. However, ii the cap is incorrectly positioned with respect to the advancing bottle neck a greater amount of clearance may be required to permit the cap to turn as indicated in Fig. 11 in response to movement of the bottle neck. Should this occur, any pressure exerted by the cap against the upturned ilange 2id permits the plate 2 i il to slide horizontally so as to release the' cap and permit the same to move freely onto the bottle neck. Furthermore, should the cap tend to tip up or slide from the bottle neck or otherwise be incorrectly positioned the at plate 2 l@ serves to limit such movement and to cause the cap to asaaics be seated on the bottle neck and to remain thereon as the bottle passes to the capping station. The cap thus seated is indicated at Fig. 13.

The bottle neck with the cap 20 loosely seated thereon now passes to the capping station which, as shown in Figs. 1 and 21, comprises a plurality of rotating platforms 220 which receive the botuntil the adhesive sets. One type of capping head suitable for this purpose has been disclosed in the copending application of Carl W. Goodwin, Ser. No. 383,752.

In a standard filling and capping machine of the type above indicated the platforms 220 ele- -vate the bottles into the capping heads 22| which advance with the platforms and hold the folded skirts under pressure a sufcient length of time to permit the adhesive to set. The bottles are then lowered from the heads 22| as indicated in Fig. 15, leaving the caps completely sealed on the bottle neck. 'I'he bottle with the caps thus positioned are then discharged onto the conveyor l of Figs. 1 and 21 and are ready for delivery or shipment.

In order to actuate the solenoids |23 of Fig. 18, which releases the one-revolution clutch for actuating the picker mechanism, or the solenoid |32 of Fig. 22, a bottle actuated control mechanism may be provided, as indicated in Fig. 21. In this embodiment a contact arm 225 is positioned to be actuated by a bottle as it advances beneath the filling mechanism and before it reaches the capping station C. The position of the contact arm 225 is so selected that the timing of the travel of the bottle between the contact arm 225 and the capping station C correspond to the time required for a cap to be withdrawn from the supply chamber 30 by the picker nn- ,45 gers 54 and to travel through the feed chute to 30 tacky for sealing.

the capping station, so that the cap is in a position to be applied to the bottle as it reaches said station. The arm 225 actuates a switch 228 which closes a circuit to the solenoid |23 above mentioned to synchronize the supply of caps with the supply of bottles so that each bottle is assured of receiving a cap when it reaches the eapping station. Furthermore, if there is no bottle Vin any particular position on the iilling appa- 55 ratus, the arm 225 is not actuated and no cap is removed from the stack. The caps are thus removed only as required and are immediately applied to the bottle neck and pass under the sealing head while the thermoplastic is soft and Operation The operation of the various individual elements of the above mentioned mechanism has been described above. It is to be noted that the complete machine operates as a unit to automatically apply and seal caps of the type above indicated to milk bottles as they are received from the lling machine. Y

More specifically, the various tubes I6 are rst lled with stacks of caps 20 as indicated in Fig. 2. The machine is then ready for operation. As the milk bottles are received from -the conveyor i, Fig. 1, and pass around the filling mechanism F, they successively engage the contact arm 225 and then continue their way to the capping station F beneath the end of the delivery chute |95. The contact arm 225 actuates the solenoid |23 and thereby releases the one revolution clutch, as shown in Fig. 4 to permit the picker mechanism to pass through oneY chute |95 down which they fall onto the plate |96. In rolling along the feed plate |45, the band of adhesive 25 0n the edge of the skirt passes beneath the row of lamps and is heated by the radiant heat from such lamps as focused by the reflectors |90, so that the caps are discharged to the capping station F with the adhesive in condition for securing the pleated skirt.

The advancing bottles pick up the caps from the capping station F and pass with the caps seated thereon beneath the capping heads |2|. 'I'he capping heads then fold and seal the skirts as above indicated and release the bottles with the caps per anently secured thereon.

It is to be noted that in the above described l apparatus a substantial supply of caps is maintained in the magazine M. ment shown the magazine contains eight stacks of caps. It is to be understood, however, that this number of stacks may be varied as desired. The arrangement is such that the magazine is automatically advanced to position a new stack in alignment with the supply chamber whenever one stack of caps is exhausted.

The various stacks are accordingly successively made available for the capping mechanism Without manual attention and it is only necessary to refill the magazine at infrequent intervals. This feature eliminates the necessity for constant attention which would otherwise be required in maintaining a sufficient supply of caps available. For example, each stack of" caps in a tube I6 may contain 250 caps. The entire eight stacksaccordingly contain 2000 caps which, with the machine operating to cap 100 bottles per minute, is suilicient to operate the machine for twent;I minutes.

The entire cap applying mechanism, including the magazine M, the picker mechanism P and the feed 'chute C is mounted on the pedestal 1. Consequently, the mechanism may be positioned to supply caps to bottles between the illiing station F and the capping heads H of a standard filling and capping machine, such as that commonly used for applying disc caps to milk bottles. In that event the disc capping heads are removed and capping heads 22| of the type above indicated are substituted therefor. Otherwise, no changes are required in the machine.

It is to be understood that the time of heating of the caps in the feed chute and the sealing time of the capping head 22| may be selected in accordance with the particular adhesive be# ing used so that the adhesive is first heated to the proper temperature for softening the same and the caps are later held under pressure in the sealing Ihead a sufficient time to allow the adhesive to set and permanently secure the folds of the skirt.

It is to be noted that heat applied is in the In the embodi- -varound the container neck, which comprises ai supply chamber containing a stack of said caps,

nature of flash heat or radiant heat and that the adhesive is heated rapidly and em'ciently without heating the corresponding portion of the cap or skirt. In this Way the time required for heating the adhesive is greatly reduced and at the same time the sealing time is correspondingly reduced. Inasmuch as the cap skirt is comparatively cool and the body of the cap is substantially unheated, the adhesive is cooled to a setting temperature substantially immediately by the cold milk bottle when the skirt is folded therearound in the capping head. At the speed of operation above mentioned by Way of example, substantially flash heating and flash cooling is obtained. In this way, the adhesivecoated, skirted caps are applied to milk bottles and sealed thereon during the time usually required for applying discs to milk bottles in standard filling and capping machines. The cost of operation and the attention required in the dairy is accordingly not greatly increased, an important feature in the dairy industry where the margin of profit is decidedly small and the cost of capping must be kept to a minimum.

Although a specific embodiment of the invention has been shown for purposes of illustration, it is to be understood that variouschanges and modifications may be made therein as will be readily apparent to a. person skilled in the art. Furthermore, the various features set forth above may be applied individually to other types of capping machines and for other uses and are not restricted to the specific combination disclosed. The invention is only to be limited in accordance with the .scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A machine for applying to containers and sealing thereon partially preformed hood caps having foldable pleated skirts carrying a thermoplastic adhesive coating for securing the folds around the container neck, which comprises a supply chamber containing a stack of said caps, a magazine containing a plurality of reserve stacks of caps, means actuated by the caps in said chamber for feeding successive reserve stacks thereto so as to maintain a continuous supply of caps in said chamber, a feed chute having a surface along which said caps are adapted to roll, picker mechanism for removing the caps successively from said supply chamber and feeding the caps to said feed chute, means rolling said caps on the edges of their skirts along said surface, means to heat soften the adhesive coating on the cap skirts as the caps roll along said chute to thereby render the coating tacky for sealing, means applying said cap from said feed chute with its adhesive tacky for sealing onto a bottle to be capped, and sealing mechanism adapted to fold said pleated skirt around the bottle neck and to apply sealing pressure thereto until said adhesive has set for permanently securing said folds together.

2. A machine for applying to containers and sealing thereon partially preformed hood caps having foldable pleated skirts carrying a thermoplastic adhesive coating for securing the folds a feed chute having a surface along which said caps are adapted to roll, picker mechanism for removing the caps successively from said supply chamber and feeding the caps to said feed chute, means rolling said caps in substantially vertical edgewise position on the lower edges of their skirts along said surface, means heat softening the adhesive coating on the cap skirts as the caps roll along said chute to thereby render the coating tacky for sealing, means applying said cap from said chute with its adhesive tacky for sealing onto a bottle to be capped, and sealing mechanism adapted to fold said pleated skirt around the bottle neck and to apply sealing pressure thereto until said adhesive has set for permanently securing said folds together.

3. A machine for applying to containers and sealing thereon partially preformed hood caps having foldable pleated skirts carrying a thermoplastic adhesive coating for securing the folds around the container neck, which comprises a supply chamber containing a stack of said caps, a feed chute having a surface along which said caps are adapted to roll, picker mechanism for removing the caps successively from said chamber and feeding the caps to said feed chute, means rolling said caps in substantially vertical edgewise position on the edges of their skirts along said surface, means to heat soften the adhesive coating on the cap skirt as the caps roll along said chute, to thereby render the thermoplastic adhesive tacky for sealing, mechanism positioning the caps from said chute in vertical position in a capping station to be engaged by the advancing containers and seated thereon by the horizontal movement of the containers past said capping station, and sealing mechanism to fold and press the pleated skirts around the container necks and to hold the skirts under sealing pressure until said adhesive has cooled to setting temperature.

4. A machine for applying to containers and' sealing thereon partially preformed hood caps having foldable pleated skirts carrying a thermoplastic adhesive coating for securing the folds around the container neck, Whichmcomprises a supply chamber containing a stack of said caps nested with their skirts extending rearwardly, a magazine containing a plurality of reserve stacks of caps, means actuated by the stack of caps in said chamber for successively supplying said reserve stacks to said supply chamber so as to maintain a continuous supply of caps therein, a feed chute having a surface along which said caps are adapted to roll, picker mechanism for removing the caps successively from said chamber and feeding the caps to said feed chute, means rolling said caps in substantially vertical edgewise position on the edges of their skirts along said surface, means to heat soften the adhesive coating on the cap skirt as the caps roll along said chute, to thereby render the thermoplastic adhesive tacky for sealing, mechanism positioning the caps from said chute in vertical position in a capping station to be engaged by the advancing containers and seated thereon by the horizontal movement of the containers past said capping station, and sealing mechanism to fold and press the pleated skirts around the container necks and to hold the skirts under sealing presvsure until said adhesive has cooled to setting temperature.

5. In a machine for applying to containers and sealing thereon partially preformed hood caps having foldable pleated skirts, a supply chamber containing a stack of said caps for successive removal and application to bottle necks, a supply magazine containing a plurality of reserve stacks of caps, said magazine comprising a rotatable turret, a plurality of stack receiving tubes spaced peripherally around said turret and carried thereby, said tubes being adapted to successively register with the supply chamber as said turret is rotated, driving means to rotate said turret, and cap actuated means actuated by the caps in said; chamber for controlling said driving means, saldi cap actuating means energizing said driving"l means to advance said turret when the supply of' caps in said supply chamber has become exhausted and (lie-energizing said driving means to stop said turret when caps are again supplied to said chamber from a tube which has been brought c into registration therewith, said driving means being connected to continue in operation after energization until de-energized by said cap actuated means.

6. In a machine for applying to containers and sealing thereon partially preformed hood caps having foldable pleated skirts, a supply chamber containing a stack of said caps for successive removal and application to bottle necks, a supply magazine containing a plurality of reserve stacks of caps, said magazine comprising a rotatable turret, a plurality of stack receiving tubes spaced peripherally around said turret and carried thereby, said tubes being adapted to successively register with thevsupply chamber as said turret is rotated, driving means to rotate said turret and cap actuated means controlling said driving means to advance said turret automatically when one supply of caps in said supply chamber has become exhausted, whereby a continuous supply of caps is maintained in said supply chamber from said magazine, said driving means cornprising an electric motor and a non-reversible mechanical gear train connecting said motor to said turret whereby said turret remains in successive positions when the operation of said motor is interrupted.

'1. In a machine for applying to containers and sealing thereon partially preformed hood caps having foldable pleated skirts, a supply chamber containing a stack of said caps for successive removal and application to bottle necks, a supply magazine containing a plurality of reserve stacks of caps, said magazine comprising a rotatable turret, a plurality of stack receiving tubes spaced peripherally around said turret and carried thereby, said tubes being adapted to successively register with the supply chamber as said turret is rotated, driving means to rotate said turret, cap actuated means actuated by the caps in said chamber for controlling said r,driving means, said cap actuating means energizing said driving means to advance said turret when the supply of caps in said supply chamber has become exhausted and de-energizing said driving means to stop said turret when caps are again supplied to said chamber from a tube which has been brought into registration therewith, said driving means being connected to continue in operation after energization until de-energized by said cap actuated means, and means securing said turret against rotation except when said driving means is operating.

CARL W. GOODWIN.

HAROLD W. MARTIN. 

